I propose to do an evaluation research project using patient outcome to assess the effectiveness of a hospital administrative change. I will attempt to answer the question: Is a system of specialized treatment units a more effective way to organize a psychiatric hospital than the general unit system? I will be taking advantage of a recent reorganization from the general unit system to a system of specialized treatment units at one psychiatric hospital also a similarly sized hospital located in a similar community which has not undergone this reorganization. Basically I will be comparing the reorganized hospital to itself before the reorganization and comparing the other hospital to itself in the same time span. Measurement techniques will include hospital records (length of stay and patient recidivism statistics), followup questionnaires to the patient, followup questionnaires to the patient's closest relative, and field interviews with the patient and his relatives. Questionnaire data will be sought on approximately 1700 patients which should allow for adequate statistical power to answer the main question and also to explore how general and specialized unit systems affect different groupings of patients. Patient length of stay and recidivism data will be put into a time-series: data will be collected on a monthly basis from three years before the reorganization to one year after. The use of a time-series analysis and the use of a comparison hospital should give the study increased power to separate the effects of the reorganization from long-term historical and seasonal trends.